Title

"If You Got the Moves Baby, I Got the Angles" -The Wolfman

Broad Question

How does the angle from which a soccer ball is shot into a goal affect its accuracy?

Specific Question

From which of the angles every ten digits from 50 degrees to 130 degrees will test subjects score the most often?




Hypothesis

It is hypothesized that 90 degrees will be the angle at which the most shots out of five are scored for the majority of testers.


Rationale: The rationale for this hypothesis is the fact that every time you move away from facing the goal straight on, the open area that is able to be scored on gets a little smaller. There is less surface area on that side that the ball could go through if it were to travel in a straight line from the angle marker to the goal. For instance, when you look at a goal far from the side of the field, say at a 50 degree angle, it appears to be smaller, because the side netting of the goal is blocking your eyesight (and the ball). The larger the difference between the angle of the shot and 90 degrees, the less likely the ball is to go in the net. The angles 100-130 might allow for test subjects to score the ball a few times than they would for the angles 50-90 degrees. It is hypothesized that right-footed kickers will be more accurate shooting with the ball to the kicker’s left of the center (100-130 degrees) because most right-footed soccer players find it easier to shoot across their left than across their right because that is the way that their windup feels most comfortable based on my research.



Graph of Hypothesis

wisy12-b-hypograph.jpg




Variables

Independent Variable:

The independent variable is the angle of the shot.

Dependent Variable:

The dependent variable is the number of goals scored (no units).

Variables That Need To Be Controlled:

Size of goal, soccer ball type, soccer ball size, soccer ball weight, distance from goal of angle markers, temperature in gym, lighting in gym, person recording data, knowledge of test subjects as to experiment purpose, kicking surface, method of measurement

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation:

theory: idea for what something means, the study of a subject
corresponding: related to







General Plan


Potential Problems And Solutions
Problem: No shots or very few shots are scored from all angles; Solution: move angle markers closer towards goal
Problem: All/too many shots are scored from all angles; Solution: move angle markers further away from goal
Problem: Test subjects perform in a biased manner based on the purpose of experiment; Solution: read misleading script to test subjects
Problem: Experiment results are highly erratic; Solution: eliminate highest and lowest numbers from data sheet

Safety Or Environmental Concerns

Injuries due to kicking such as sprains, breaks, twists

Experimental Design

The gym will be set up with lines of masking tape on the wall that form a soccer goal. 30 feet away from the center of the goal, (measured with a tape measure) there will be a piece of tape at a 130 degree angle relative to the goal line (measured with a protractor). This will be labeled with its angle, and 6 more tape markers will be set up in the same way. These will range from 120 degrees to 50 degrees. The tape markers will form a semicircle that is 30 feet away from the center of the goal line at any tape marker point. A clipboard with a data table will be ready for data collection, and a Sharpie and pen will be on hand to label tape markers and fill in data. Each test subject will receive a nametag that is numbered with a number from 1-5. A size 5 soccer ball will be in position to be kicked 5 times each from each angle by each test subject.

Resources and Budget Table



Item
Number needed
Where I will get this
Cost
Brine Soccer Ball
1
Mr. Pickering (Bartlett Athletic Department)
borrowed
Masking Tape
2
Mr. Yahna (Science Class)
borrowed
Sharpie Permanent Marker
1
Mr. Mountford (Social Studies Class)
borrowed
Bic Ballpoint Pen
1
I already owned one
NA
Large Wooden Protractor
1
Ms. Penza (Math Class)
borrowed
Measuring Tape
1
Mr. Yahna (Science Class)
borrowed
Wooden Clipboard
1
Mr. Mountford (Social Studies Class)
borrowed
Experiment Test Subjects
5
NA
NA
Supervisors (Mr. Wiley
and Mr. Pickering)
2
NA
NA

Detailed Procedure


  1. Set up time to use gym.
  2. Sign up 5 testers for experiment. All participants have some soccer experience.
  3. Create a spreadsheet with each testers name and tester number (1-5), each angle, and 5 spots for each angle for each tester.
  4. On day of testing, setup soccer net in gym, with the goal line over center of the end line of the basketball court. Use duct tape to ensure that the goal will not move when a shot is taken.
  5. Test the strength of the net by taking 3 hard shots on net from 30 feet away.
  6. Use large protractor (borrowed from Ms. Penza) to mark the following spots, each exactly 30 feet away (measured with a tape measure borrowed from Mr. Yahna) from the center of the goal line: tape marker 50 degrees from the goal, 60 degrees from the goal, 70 degrees from the goal, 80 degrees from the goal, 90 degrees from the goal, 100 degrees from the goal, 110 degrees from the goal, 120 degrees from the goal, and 130 degrees from the goal. Put a small piece of tape on the center of the goal line.
  7. Label each tape marker with its corresponding angle number.
  8. Using the following steps, printed-out spreadsheet, a pen/pencil, and a clipboard, record the number of shots that go in* the net for each test subject’s trials for each angle.
  9. Bring testers down to gym for the experiment.
  10. Read script and give instructions to test subjects. The next tester in line will be the ball retriever.
  11. Give each test subject a name tag with their tester number on it. Start with tester 1, and then go in order all the way up to tester 5 when testing an angle, and start with angle 60 degrees all the way up to angle 120 degrees.
  12. Place a size 5 soccer ball directly on the tape marker for 50 degrees.
  13. Have test subject step back to wherever he/she feels comfortable, and do their best to score a goal. It is best if the test subject does not know what is being tested in the experiment.
  14. For every goal scored, make a tally mark in the corresponding box on the spreadsheet. For every miss, no mark is made.
  15. Once the test subject has taken 5 shots, have the test subject join the rest of the group of test subjects sitting in order on the bleachers.
  16. Repeat steps 10-14 for each remaining test subject for each remaining shot angle.
*More than half of ball must bounce onto the goal for it to count.


Photo List

  • Experiment Setup
  • Testing/Test Subjects
  • Results Data Sheet

Time Line

3/5: Run Experiment



Data Table

wisy12-b-datatable.jpg


Link to data and data graph spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/a/students.jbartlett.k12.nh.us/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Agi3nYc5mtUadHpnU25MUUZIeEZZWjdleVR2YVQwaHc#gid=0





Data Analysis


Graphs

graph.jpg
oops.jpg


Photos


wisy12-b-sideviewshot
A test subject shoots from the 60 degree mark



wisy12-b-backviewshot
A test subject shoots from the 90 degree mark

Results

In this experiment the results showed that 110 degrees was the angle at which the test subjects scored the most goals on average, at 3.0. The average number of shots scored from the 130 degree angle was the lowest, at 1.2. The average number of shots scored from the 50 degree angle was 2.2. The average number of shots scored from the 60 degree angle was 1.8. The average number of shots scored from the 70 degree angle was 2.8. The average number of shots scored from the 80 degree angle was 2.4. The average number of shots scored from the 90 degree angle was 2.6. The average number of shots scored from the 100 degree angle was 2.8. The average number of shots scored from the 120 degree angle was 2.6. The average number of shots scored from a 130 degree angle was 1.2.

Conclusion

The experiment was designed to test the effect different shot angles have on how many shots are scored on an indoor soccer goal. With the exception of one angle, the results show that the farther away you move from shooting straight on at the goal, the less likely you are to score a shot. The average number of shots scored by test subjects from 50 degrees was 2.2, from 90 degrees was 2.6, and from 130 degrees 1.2.

Discussion

The experiment was conducted to test how the angle from which a shot is taken into a soccer goal affects its accuracy. The experiment question was: “How does the angle from which a soccer ball is shot into a goal affect its accuracy?” The experiment results did answer the experiment question. The results showed that the closer you move to shooting from a 90 degree angle, the better chance you have of scoring. On average, 110 degrees was the angle from which the most goals were scored. The answer to the experiment question was that the angle from which a soccer ball is shot into a goal affects its accuracy by making the shot more likely to go in from 110 degrees. It was hypothesized that 90 degrees would be the angle at which the most shots out of five were scored by the majority of the tester subjects. This hypothesis was supported by the majority of the results, with the exception of two test subjects. The answer to the experiment question, that 110 degrees is the angle at which testers will score the most goals out of 5, does not support the hypothesis because the hypothesis said that 90 degrees would be the angle at which testers scored the goals out of 5. The experiment question and hypothesis, however, were close to being correct. In this experiment the results showed that 110 degrees was the angle at which the test subjects scored the most goals on average, at 3.0. The average number of shots scored from the 130 degree angle was at the lowest, at 1.2. The average number of shots scored from the 50 degree angle was 2.2. The average number of shots scored from the 60 degree angle was 1.8. The average number of shots scored from the 70 degree angle was 2.8. The average number of shots scored from the 80 degree angle was 2.4. The average number of shots scored from the 90 degree angle was 2.6. The average number of shots scored from the 100 degree angle was 2.8. The average number of shots scored from the 120 degree angle was 2.6. The average number of shots scored from a 130 degree angle was 1.2. Therefore, 90 degrees was the third-highest scoring angle, which means that the initial experiment hypothesis was not completely incorrect, as the experiment data was not completely consistent.


A trend that was seen during the experiment was that the further one goes from shooting straight on at the goal (from the 90 degree angle marker), the less likely that person is to score a shot. The relationship between the independent variable conditions (angle from which shot is taken) and change in the dependent variable (number of shots scored out of 5) is fairly strong, because most of the data supported the statement that a very low or very high independent variable resulted in the dependent variable being low. Not all of the data supported this, but for the most part the relationship between the variables is a steady cause and effect one with few discrepancies. For example, the strength of the cause and effect is shown in these following examples taken from the experiment’s data table: For a shot taken from the 50 degree angle marker (low angle/independent variable), Test Subject 1 scored 1 goal. From the 90 degree angle marker (neither high nor low angle/independent variable), he/she scored 4 goals. From the 130 degree angle marker (high angle/independent variable), he/she also scored 1 goal. One test subject, Test Subject 22, produces inconsistent results during experimentation that made it hard to identify any pattern or cause and effect between the independent and dependent variables. The results displayed by this experiment happened simply because of what some might call “theoretic surface area”. Basically, when a shooter is shooting completely straight on at a goal (from 90 degrees), all the surface area of the side of the goal for scoring on is presented. When he/she moves sideways, the area of the goal that is able to be scored on gets a certain percentage smaller. For instance, from a 50 degree angle, only 60 percent of the goal could be presented. This makes it more difficult to score, because there is a smaller goal to shoot at. This theory is able to be seen correctly when it is explained thoroughly. If one moves to the left side of a goal, the shooter’s left side of the goal would block line of shot for the shooter.


Through research and knowledge of previous experiments similar to this one, it was known that the amount of goals scored was directly correlated to the angle from which the shot is taken. The preliminary research, exploration, and investigation of other experiments also showed that a 90 degree shot should be the most accurate. One mismatch that exists between the research and the experiment results was that the experiment conducted showed that 110 degrees was the “best” angle for shooting instead of 90 degrees. In the design of the experiment, a few problems were managed, such as making sure each test subject did not know the purpose of the experiment by misleading them in the script, making sure the goal was able to be scored on by testing it from 30 feet before the trials, and making sure all data was recorded accurately by using a system of tally marks and circles. The only problem that arose during the experiment was the fact that there was not enough time to finish testing on the first day for all five testers, so the experiment was conducted over the course of two separate days instead of one as was planned. The experiment design and operation changed as the changed as the experiment was run, primarily in the role of the test subjects that were not actively involved. Instead of sitting on the bleachers like the experiment design and procedure said, they helped to retrieve the ball to speed the slow process along. What could have been done better to improve upon this experiment would be to run the experiment all on one day, and to have more than one soccer ball so two test subjects could test at the same time to speed it up. What could have been smarter to do would be to record by circling however many goals were scored out of a consecutive number list up to five for each test subject. There was no specialized information or technology used to conduct this experiment, besides the knowledge of theoretic surface area and what is meant in the situation. The knowledge gained through this experiment could be a use to many people, but mostly for soccer players. A soccer player might have an open net to score on in a game, and have to make a split-second decision between shooting from the left side of the goal or from the center. During a game there is not nearly enough to stop and think about where to shoot from. Knowing what place was statistically more likely to result in a goal would be very helpful to most professional and recreational soccer players wanting their team to do well and win games. Besides soccer, this principle of theoretical surface area could be applied and used to shooting in most any ball-sport like football, basketball, or hockey especially. It could even be used in the military, because shooting at a target from one place may not be as easy as shooting from another, more centered angle. To build upon the knowledge that has been created with this experiment, experiments could be done on the effects of raising the height/vertical angle as well as the side-to-side/horizontal angle. Experiments could also be done to test the effects of surroundings on a shooter's accuracy. A question that is very interesting that the experiment inspired was finding what the exact equation is that mathematically calculates how much the theoretical surface area changes as the shot angle changes.



Background Research

The main object in the game of soccer is to score a goal -- and few things affect the outcome of a shot as much as its angle. There are other elements to successful goal kicks, like keeping calm and passing well, but with practice and patience, shooting from the proper angle will create more scoring opportunities. Once you master basic shooting techniques, finding the right angle feels natural.
LOW-ANGLE SHOTS
Low-angle shots on goal are sometimes deflected by the goalie but still drop into the goal after the block, especially if you are in close to the 6-yard box, according to goalkeeper and coach Bert Ingley. This angle of up-close and low-down makes it difficult for the defending goalie to protect as she would need to drop on top of the ball to protect the net. Ingley suggests aiming for the back post when one of your strikers are nearby to help frame your shot and to set-up a rebound shot if your attempt is blocked.


If you are outside of the 6-yard box and shooting from a side angle, Ingle suggests using the opposing team's defenders to block the goalie's view of you. Keep the defender between you and the goaltender until you have the opportunity to swerve around him and kick powerfully toward the goal, leaving the goalie unaware until it's too late. If the goalie is able to block this shot, the ball usually stays close enough to the goal for another rebound attempt as well.
OUTSIDE CORNERS
Whether you are in close to the goal or 30 yards away, the safest shot is to angle the ball towards one of the upper corners of the net. With this shot, the goalkeeper must jump up and over simultaneously, often missing the ball or having the ball brush across her fingertips on its way into the net. When you are ready to take your shot, pick your head up and look at where you want the ball to go before you kick it, then aim for whatever side is further away from the goalie.
BODY ANGLES
You should also be aware of your body's positioning during play, not just the angle of your shots. Take your kicking leg as far back as possible to generate the most power. Then angle your ankle so that your toes are pointed straight. Keeping a slight bend to your stationary knee, angle your body slightly forward to keep the ball low and avoid pop-ups. Lastly, plant your stationary leg about 1 to 1 1/2 feet from the ball while keeping your ankle at a 45 degree angle. Hit the ball with your laces on top of your foot.


Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world today. There are two teams each
consisting of 11 player that aim to score the most goals in 90 minutes while following a certain
set of rules. Players can use their entire bodies, except their hands, to move the ball around the
playing field. Each team has a goalie who is allowed to use their hands to stop the ball when an
opposing team tries to shoot it into the net.
Millions of people play soccer every day, but how many of them take the time to
calculate the precise angle to shoot before heading to the field? This was investigation of the
mathematics of soccer by using Geometry Expressions, a constraint-based geometry system,
and Maple, a computer algebra system (CAS), to model situations that take place during an
average soccer game. Questions that were explored were: What is the necessary width of the
wall of defenders that will block the entire goal within the angle of a straight shot? What is the
angle of both a straight and curved kick as a function of the location on the field and what is the
“best” location for each of these kicks to score a goal? What is the “best” location for a sideline
kick with a straight shot? What is the “best” location for a corner kick?
So far, there has been minimal mathematical research on soccer kicks, although there
have been numerous studies on the physics of soccer and how the ball curves.



Many people would just like to kick straight on, but if you had to chose a angle you would probably be best shooting from the left. People have more room, more shooting space, and could maybe bend the ball, but that is just my opinion

It depends what you want to do, if you want to bend it to the left or right or just a straight power shot with no curve. But you defintiely have to kick it your your angle to bend to your side. and to bend to the oppsite you have to kick the ball on the left side but straight

Abstract
To produce the greatest horizontal distance in a punt kick the
ball must be projected at an appropriate angle. Here, we investigated the optimum projection angle that maximises the distance
attained in a punt kick by a soccer goalkeeper. Two male players
performed many maximum-effort kicks using projection angles
of between 10° and 90°. The kicks were recorded by a video
camera at 100 Hz and a 2-D biomechanical analysis was conducted to obtain measures of the projection velocity, projection
angle, projection height, ball spin rate, and foot velocity at
impact. The player’s optimum projection angle was calculated
by substituting mathematical equations for the relationships
between the projection variables into the equations for the aerodynamic flight of a soccer ball. The calculated optimum projection angles were in agreement with the player’s preferred projection angles (40° and 44°). In projectile sports even a small dependence of projection velocity on projection angle is sufficient
to produce a substantial shift in the optimum projection angle
away from 45°. In the punt kicks studied here, the optimum
projection angle was close to 45° because the projection velocity
of the ball remained almost constant across all projection angles.
This result is in contrast to throwing and jumping for maximum
distance, where the projection velocity the athlete is able to
achieve decreases substantially with increasing projection angle
and so the optimum projection angle is well below 45°.
Key words: Sports biomechanics, sports projectile.
Introduction
A long punt kick by a soccer goalkeeper is a very useful
skill (Figure 1). Most experienced keepers are able to kick
the ball from within their penalty area to well beyond the
halfway line and so turn a defensive situation into an
offensive one. The farther the keeper can kick the ball the
larger the area in which his/her team mates may receive
the ball and the greater the offensive opportunities. It is
well known that a greater projection velocity results in a
greater kick distance (de Mestre, 1990; Wesson, 2002).
However, the optimum projection angle to achieve maximum distance in a punt kick is less clear.
In previous experimental studies of throwing and
jumping the optimum projection angle was not 45° as is
sometimes supposed. For the optimum projection angle to
be 45° the athlete’s projection velocity must be the same
at all projection angles. Even a small dependence of projection velocity on projection angle is sufficient to produce a substantial shift in the optimum projection angle
(Hubbard, 2000). If the athlete’s projection velocity increases with increasing projection angle then the optimum
projection angle will be greater than 45°, and if the athlete’s projection velocity decreases with projection angle
then the optimum projection angle will be less than 45°.


Objectives/Goals
My project was to determine how angle and spin affect the trajectory of a kicked soccer ball.
My objective was to learn how my success rate would vary by shooting a soccer ball with or without spin
from different angles.
Methods/Materials
A soccer ball was shot at a goal divided into three equal sections from five angles. Each angle was
exactly 32 feet apart on a line that's precise center point was 18 yards from the goal. At each angle the
soccer ball was kicked on a left, right and center point with enough force to produce the desired loft and
curve trajectory (Magnus force).
Materials used were size four soccer balls, size four soccer cleats, tape measure and a regulation size goal
and soccer field. A right-footed, 75 pound eleven year old was used as the kicker.
Results
My results showed that shooting a soccer ball on it's center point consistently hits it's target more than
kicking it on it's left or right point with spin. I realized that spin has a big affect on the trajectory of a
kicked soccer ball.
Conclusions/Discussion
In a real game situation, the shot I least made (the one with spin and curve) may be the best. This is
because at my age group this is the hardest shot to accomplish and the least expected. The ultimate
intention is to deceive the goalie.



What angle is best for kicking? The simple answer is 45 degrees:


Time of flight t = 2vy/g
Distance = vx*t = 2vx*vy/g
We must maximize vx*vy as a function of launch velocity v.
vx = vcosθ, vy=vsinθ
Thus we must maximize sinθcosθ. At the maximum, the derivative of sinθcosθ = 0. From the ref, the derivative = cos(2θ). Thus cos(2θ) = 0, 2θ = 90 deg, θ = 45 deg.


or in non-math terms:
people.brunel.ac.uk/~spstnpl/LearningR…


The hard answer is way more complex than that. It would depend on the wind, your angle of approach to the ball, and at what angle in your kick you have the most power but even that would be between 30 and 60 degrees.


Bottom line, unless you have thousands of dollars to spend on getting your kick analyzed and you're able to kick it at an EXACT angle every time, shoot for somewhere around 45 degrees.


This is for throw-ins but the same principles apply:
ABSTRACT
We investigated the release angle that maximises the distance attained in a
long soccer throw-in. One male soccer player performed maximum-effort
throws using release angles of between 10 and 60º, and the throws were
analysed using 2-D video. The player’s optimum release angle was
calculated by substituting mathematical expressions for the measured
relations between release speed, release height, and release angle into the
equations for the flight of a spherical projectile. We found that the
musculoskeletal structure of the player’s body had a strong influence on
the optimum release angle. When using low release angles the player
released the ball with a greater release speed, and because the range of a
projectile is strongly dependent on the release speed, this bias toward low
release angles reduced the optimum release angle to about 30°.
Calculations showed that the distance of a throw may be increased by a
few metres by launching the ball with a fast backspin, but the ball must be
launched at a slightly lower release angle.


Tips to improve your chance of scoring:


  • Shoot wide rather than high. There's a better chance of getting a deflection that will wrong-foot the goalkeeper.
  • Shoot low. It's harder for a keeper to reach shots along the ground because it's further for them to travel. It's easy for them to jump up and save, but much harder to crouch down and get it.
  • Shoot across the keeper. It's tougher for them to hold these shots, and means they could divert the ball back into the path of another attacker.
Where Are the Most Shots Made?
Ever wondered if there's actually a "sweet spot" in a soccer goal? A place where you could kick the ball and it would go in almost every time?
Well, there may not be a definitive "sweet spot," but a recent study did take a look at where scored goals most often went into the net. Here are the results:


  • Top Left: 8 percent
  • Top Center: 4 percent
  • Top Right: 5 percent
Ouch. As you can see, shooting high means you have a pretty low percentage of actually scoring.


  • Middle Left: 7 percent
  • Middle Center: 8 percent
  • Middle Right: 6 percent
While you have a better chance of scoring if you shoot to the middle than up high, the odds still aren't much in your favor.


  • Bottom Left: 22 percent
  • Bottom Center: 21 percent
  • Bottom Right: 19 percent
Look at these statisticss: 62 percent of all goals were scored low. This makes sense because it is very difficult for goalkeepers, especially tall ones, to get down to the ground. It's much easier and more natural for them to jump high.
Also, looking at the statistics, 67 percent of goals were scored in the corners versus 33 percent down the middle. If you combine the two statistics and shoot low into the corner, you should have a much greater success rate in scoring goals.
As with any soccer technique, you need to practice if you want to improve your shooting skills. Fortunately, the techniques used for shooting are similar to those used for passing. So you can build up two vital soccer techniques at the same time.
But most importantly: If you see the goal, shoot!
This one piece of advice is important enough to reiterate: You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take. If you see an opportunity to shoot, take it! The only way these tips can help you is if you implement them, both in practice and in games.




Top of the 18? just turned your defender in the box? Just tuck it away now with the biggest surface on your foot the inside. Now that you're close to the target your shooting technique is very much the same as hitting it with your laces but the obvious main difference is hitting it with the inside of your foot. Important things to remember:
- LOW and to the CORNERS! This is essential, put the ball far from the keeper.
- Don't think because its a closer shot that you are just guiding the ball in, really hit it, put some pace behind it and aim for LOW and to the CORNERS!

Soccer (football, outside the US) provides us with an interesting question. Imagine a player running towards the goal, in a line perpendicular to it. Assume this is a drill, and there is no one guarding the goal. Assume also the player is so strong that distance from the goal is not an issue. At any given time, the player is at the vertex of a shooting angle, with the sides of the angle passing through the goalposts. If he shoots within the angle, he will make the goal. Outside, he will miss. Clearly, a bigger angle is better.



References

Abstract


An experiment was conducted to determine what angle of soccer shot is most accurate. It was hypothesized that 90 degrees would be the angle at which testers were most accurate. The experiment was run by having five testers shoot five soccer balls from different angles at a goal. The average number of rounded goals out of five included a maximum of 3 from 110 degrees, and a minimum of 1.2 from 130 degrees. The answer to the experiment question was that 110 degrees was the most accurate angle to shoot from.